Nawruz, which means "new day" in Persian, celebrates the beginning of spring and the start of the new year. It is observed by all religious groups in Iran and Afghanistan; in India, it is celebrated by the Parsis as Jamshed Navroz. This holiday dates back further than Islam and is believed to have come from Zoroastrian Persia, where it coincided with the VERNAL EQUINOX and was observed in honor of the solar new year.

Nawruz marks the changing of the seasons, which people in all parts of the world have honored since ancient times. Many cultures divided the year into two seasons, summer and winter, and marked these points of the year at or near the summer and winter solstices, during which light and warmth began to increase and decrease, respectively. In pre-industrial times, humans survived through hunting, gathering, and agricultural practices, which depend on the natural cycle of seasons, according to the climate in the region of the world in which they lived. Thus, they created rituals to help ensure enough rain and sun in the spring and summer so crops would grow to fruition at harvest time, which was, in turn, duly celebrated. Vestiges of many of these ancient practices are thought to have survived in festivals still celebrated around seasonal themes.

In fifteenth-century Egypt, Persian Nawruz customs were combined with those of a typical SATURNALIA or CARNIVAL celebration. People crowned a "Prince of the New Year," who smeared flour all over his face, rode through the streets on a donNawruz

key, and collected money. Anyone who failed to make a suitable contribution was doused with water or dirt. Sometimes teachers were attacked by their students and thrown into a fountain, from which they had to "buy" their way out. Eventually the government succeeded in suppressing the more outrageous festival customs.

In modern Iran, houses are cleaned and children are given new clothes in preparation for the thirteen-day New Year's celebration. The evening before Nawruz begins, a traditional omelette made with greens is served, along with pilaf, a rice dish symbolizing the wish for an abundant year. Friends and relatives visit each other and exchange gifts that include colored eggs (see EGG AND MIRROR ), fruit, and bunches of narcissus. Banquets featuring seven foods beginning with the letter S (see SEVEN S ' S ) are held, and the New Year's dinner is typically eaten sitting around a tablecloth spread out on the floor. In Muslim homes, it is customary to pop a piece of candy into someone's mouth on Nawruz while reciting a brief passage from the Qur'an. Sometimes each member of the family will eat a piece of candy while a passage is read from the Qur'an. Then they embrace each other and say, "May you live a hundred years."

The thirteenth day of Nawruz is called Sizdan-Bedar or "Thirteenth Day Out." It is considered unlucky to remain at home on this day, so the entire family usually goes to the country or a city park to spend the day picnicking and to welcome the arrival of spring. Folk singers, dancers, clowns, and costumed actors wander about entertaining people on this day. Children bring their GARDENS OF ADONIS with them and throw them into a stream of running water.

In Afghanistan, Nawruz is a favorite time to play buzkashi or "goat-grabbing." The object of the game is for a team of horse riders to grab the carcass of a goat that has been placed in a pit, carry it around a goal post, and put it back in the pit. The game is believed to have developed on the plains of Mongolia and Central Asia using a prisoner of war instead of a goat. Since there are several hundred horsemen on each team galloping at breakneck speed and lashing at each other with buzkashi whips, the game often results in fatalities.

SYMBOLS AND CUSTOMS

Egg and Mirror

Muslim families observe Nawruz with a dinner consisting of foods that begin with the letter S (see SEVEN S ' S ). These dishes are laid out on a tablecloth on the floor, along with a colored egg, a mirror, and a candle for each family member. At the precise moment when the new year begins, the egg is placed on the mirror. To everyone's delight, the egg usually trembles a bit-probably because of all the cannons that are fired at midnight. Eggs are a traditional symbol of fertility and new life, and their use at the new year festival may date back to the time when it was a pastoral festival marking the change from winter to summer. The light reflected in the mirror symbolizes the brightness of the future.

Gardens of Adonis

A couple of weeks before Nawruz arrives, Iranian families plant quick-growing seeds such as wheat, celery, and lentils in shallow bowls containing a little dirt and water. They soon turn into masses of green, symbolizing life and good fortune. Then, on the thirteenth day of the festival, children take the sprouted seeds and throw them over the garden wall or into a stream of running water. This act is symbolic of doing away with family quarrels so that the new year can begin in friendliness and peace (see WHEAT CAKES ).

The name for these miniature gardens dates back to ancient mythology. Adonis- originally the Babylonian god Tammuz-was a young Greek god beloved by Aphrodite. He was killed by a wild boar while hunting in the mountains, and Aphrodite was so grief-stricken that the gods arranged to let him spend half the year on earth with her and the other half in the underworld. The story of the dying god who was resurrected each year became a symbol for the seasonal shift from winter to spring. A funeral cult was founded in his honor, and each spring the women of Greece and western Asia would plant seeds in vases and sprinkle them with warm water. These Gardens of Adonis, as they were called, would be cast into the sea along with images of the young god. The blooming of the red anemone seven days later was considered to be symbolic of his return.

Seven S's (Haft-sin)

The most outstanding feature of the Nawruz celebration is the festival table, a cloth spread out on the floor containing the Haft-sin or "Seven S's," all food items that represent happiness in the new year: sabyeh or green sprouts grown from seed; sonbul or hyacinth; samanoo or sweet wheat pudding; serkeh or vinegar; sumac from the sumac plant; seeb or apple; and senjed or Bohemian olives. The Haft-sin represent the seven archangels of God who embody the principles of ethical behavior in the Zoroastrian religion.

Other foods served at the festival include roast chicken, fruit, bread, sweets, and rose water. After the feast is over, candy is passed around while passages from the Qur'an are read aloud.

Water Sprinkling

In ancient Persia, Syria, and Egypt, Nawruz was originally a celebration of the arrival of spring. People woke up early, drew running water in a vase, and then Nawruz

poured it over themselves in a symbolic act designed to stave off bad luck and harm.

There are a number of theories as to where this custom originated. Legend has it that once, after a very long drought, rain fell on New Year's Day. From that time onward, rain was considered a good omen, and pouring water over each other became a new year's tradition. Another theory is that it is simply an act of purification designed to cleanse the body of the smoke and dirt associated with tending the winter fires.

Yet another explanation is that when the prophet Solomon lost his kingdom and his powers-symbolized by the loss of his signet ring-because one of his wives had returned to the worship of her old idols, he was forced to wander unrecognized through Jerusalem and beg for his food. According to the Qur'an, Solomon was not really at fault for this lapse, and as soon as he realized why he was being punished, he sought God's forgiveness. His signet ring was restored to him and with it, his sovereignty. The swallows were so overjoyed that they celebrated by splashing each other with water.

Wheat Cakes

The wheat cakes associated with Nawruz are not ordinary cakes for eating. They are uncooked, and they contain whole grains of wheat. The cake is kept moist until the wheat sprouts and turns into a miniature garden. In many homes, there is a layer of the cake for each member of the family, and the children wait anxiously for the wheat to sprout on their layer. On the thirteenth day of the new year festival, the family takes the cake out into the fields and throws it away. Like GARDENS OF ADONIS , the wheat cakes take with them all the bad feelings and quarrels that have accumulated within the family, clearing the way for a peaceful new year.

Nawruz (Naw roz; No Ruz; New Year)

Beginning about March 21 for 13 days

The first day of spring ( nawruz means "new day") celebrated by all religious groups in Iran and Afghanistan. In India, it is celebrated by the Parsis as Jamshed Navaroz. The holiday is pre-Islamic, a legacy of Zoroastrian Persia. It is also called Ras al-Am . In Afghanistan it is celebrated as Nauruz ; in Kashmir as Nav Roz ; and in Turkmenistan, it's Novrus Bairam . Nawruz is also celebrated in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan.The origins of Nawruz are obscure, but it is generally thought to have been a pastoral festival marking the change from winter to summer. Legends have grown up around the holiday. In Afghanistan, where it is also Farmer's Day, an ugly old woman named Ajuzak is thought to roam around when Nawruz begins. If it rains on Nawruz, she is washing her hair and the spring plantings will thrive. The Achaemenid kings (559 b.c.e.-330 b.c.e.) are known to have celebrated Nawruz, probably with gift-giving. Farmers decorate their cows and come into the city for an annual agricultural fair with prizes. Betting on kite flying is a sport for later in the day.A special event, jandah bala kardan ("raising of the standard"), is held on Nawruz at the tomb of Hazrat Ali in Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. The jandah, or standard, is raised in the courtyard of the shrine, and stays there for 40 days. Thousands visit the shrine to touch the staff to gain merit, and the sick and crippled touch it hoping for cures. The standard comes down at a time when a distinct kind of red tulip blooms and then soon fades; at this time, people visit friends and wish each other long lives and many children.Buzkashi, the national game of Afghanistan, is usually played on Nawruz, especially in Mazar-i-Sharif. Buzkashi means "goat-grabbing," and the object of the game is for a team of horse riders to grab the carcass of a goat placed in a pit, carry it around a goal post, and put it back in the pit. The game is supposed to have developed on the plains of Mongolia and Central Asia, sometimes using a prisoner-of-war instead of a goat; now a dead calf is usually used. It's a ferocious game occasionally producing fatalities; there are several hundred horsemen ( chapandaz ) on each team, and they gallop at breakneck speed, lashing at horses and each other with special buzkashi whips.Special Afghan dishes on Nawruz are samanak, a dessert made of wheat and sugar, and haft-mewah ("seven fruits")—a compote of walnuts, almonds, pistachio nuts, red and green raisins, dried apricots, and a fruit called sanjet .In Iran, Nawruz is an event lasting 13 days, during which people wear new clothes, give gifts, and visit friends and relatives. Banquet tables traditionally hold seven foods starting with the letter S. Plates with sprouting wheat symbolize fertility, as do eggs, which are colored. Other symbols on the table are a mirror, candlesticks, and a bowl of water with a green leaf in it. The 13th day after No Ruz is Sizdah-Bedar or "13th day out" and everyone picnics in the country or on rugs in city parks. The idea is to get out of their houses, taking any bad luck with them.For the Baha'i, the day also marks the end of the 19-day fast, from March 2-20, when Baha'i abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset as a reminder that one's true nature is spiritual rather than material.See alsoAyyam-i-Ha

The people of Kazakhstan celebrate Nawruz around the time of the Vernal Equinox. This holiday, rendered Nauryz in Kazakhstan, celebrates the start of the new year and is the most festive of all the nation's holidays. Indeed Kazakhs sometimes call it Ulys Kuni, meaning "the first day of the new year," or Ulystyn uly kuni, "the great day of the people."Special activities take place to commemorate the occasion, including horse races, games, and all kinds of merrymaking. People dress in their best clothing, prepare large and tasty meals, exchange well-wishes and congratulations, and visit friends and family. Since the activities that take place on Nauryz are thought to foretell one's fortune for the year, people try to include an abundance of food and other good things in their celebrations.The main meal takes place around noon, and is introduced and concluded by the mullah's recitation of, a prayer honoring the ancestors. At the end of the feast, the oldest male blesses all those present so that they may prosper in the year to come. The number seven is considered a lucky number for this festival. It represents the seven days of the week. In the course of the celebrations, elderly men will be presented with seven cups of a special festival beverage called nauryz-kozhe . The beverage is itself made from seven grades of seven different kinds of grain.

CONTACTS:Permanent Mission of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United Nations866 United Nations Plz., Ste. 586New York, NY 10017212-230-1900; fax: 212-230-1172www.un.int/kazakhstan

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